The Stormers were dealt a blow before kick-off when Evan Roos and Grey College old boy Marcell Theunissen were both ruled out after picking up injuries. Despite the disruption, the visitors started brightly and controlled much of the opening half.

Jurie Matthee opened the scoring with a penalty after nine minutes before the Stormers struck for the first try. André Warner, who was one of four debutants for the Stormers, spotted space behind Connacht's defensive line with a well-weighted grubber, allowing Warrick Gelant to gather and score.

The Stormers looked set to build a commanding lead, but handling errors and poor decision-making prevented them from making their pressure count. A potential try involving Matthee and Warner was ruled out after the pass was deemed forward.

Connacht finally found their rhythm late in the half. The hosts put the Stormers under sustained pressure before Mack Hansen finished off a powerful attack to narrow the deficit.

The Stormers then gifted Connacht another opportunity after failing to deal with the ball following the halftime hooter. Josh Ioane took advantage, leaving the hosts 12-10 ahead at the break after a dramatic swing in momentum.

Captain Ruhan Nel and man of the match, André-Hugo Venter - Stormers

The visitors responded immediately after half-time, attacking with greater urgency and using their powerful pack to gain ground.

Matthee missed a chance to regain the lead from a penalty before Connacht extended their advantage through a Gilbert penalty.

The Stormers continued to apply pressure and were eventually rewarded when Sazi Sandi powered over from close range. Matthee added the conversion to put the visitors 17-15 ahead with 20 minutes remaining.

From there, the match opened up, with both teams throwing everything into attack.

Yaqeen Ahmed - X

Connacht produced some huge defensive hits to keep the Stormers at bay, while a promising break by Yaqeen Ahmed came to nothing when the try was ruled out for an offside infringement.

The Stormers refused to settle for a narrow lead.

With four minutes remaining, they won a penalty and kicked into the corner. Their forwards went to work from the resulting lineout, and debutant and former Cheetah, Vernon Paolo emerged with the ball after a powerful maul to score the decisive try.

Vernon Paulo and Ezekiel Ngobeni both scored on debut - Stormers

There was still time for another debutant to make his mark.

Ezekiel Ngobeni crossed in the dying moments to put the result beyond doubt and complete a memorable opening-night victory for the Stormers.

After surviving Connacht's late first-half surge, the Cape side finished strongly to leave Galway with a valuable five points and plenty of confidence for the early stages of the new URC campaign.

Meanwhile, on Saturday at 13:30 the Lions host the champions Leinster at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, while at 16:00 the Sharks face the Ospreys at Kings Park in Durban. At 18:30, Zebre will tackle the Bulls at Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi in Parma, Italy.

Scorers:

Connacht: Tries - Mack Hansen, Josh Ioane Conv. - Sam Gilbert Pen. - Sam Gilbert

Stormers: Tries - Warrick Gelant, Sazi Sandi, Vernon Paulo, Ezekiel Ngobeni Conv. - Jurie Matthee 2, Yaqeen Ahmed Pen. - Ahmed

Morgan Piek OFM Sport